About

Hillcrest

2015 Summer Reading Program

Join the action this summer and have a blast at the Summer Reading Program at Queens Library. This summer celebrate real-life and fictional heroes, cool books, popular fantasy and graphic novels to the latest in your favorite series.

Thank Your Elected Officials With #YouInvested!

Mayor de Blasio, Speaker Mark-Viverito, Finance Chair Ferreras, Majority Leader Van Bramer, outgoing Libraries Subcommittee Chair Constantinides, incoming Libraries Subcommittee Chair King and the New York City Council have made an historic investment in our city’s libraries.

Rockaways Summer of Health

Rockaways Summer of Health is a series of programs and events designed to educate and get the Rockaways fit and healthy. Participate in a variety of classes and workshops for a healthy lifestyle such as stress reduction, nutrition and exercise classes.

Alicia Olatuja, Soul and R&B Concert

Alicia Olatuja sings with a strong, lustrous tone, and mixes elements of classical, jazz, gospel, and pop into her fluid vocalism. She has played alongside giants like Chaka Khan, Christian McBride, and Bebe Winans.

Submit Your eBook to Library Journal's eBook Awards Contest

The Library Journal will honor the best self-published ebooks in the following genres: Romance, Mystery, Science Fiction, Fantasy. There will be a winner in each genre and each winner will receive $1,000.00 USD from Library Journal.

History

Hillcrest was developed on two hundred acres of farmland in 1909 by William F. Wyckoff of the Hillcrest of Jamaica Company. Prior to development, the area was referred to as “The Hills,” a name deriving from its location on the hills between Jamaica and Flushing. Situated in central Queens, Hillcrest lies primarily in Jamaica and partly in Flushing. This small residential area of mainly one-family houses and some 2-family and multi-family dwellings is roughly defined by Union Turnpike to the north, Jamaica Estates to the east, Hillside Avenue to the south, and 164th street to the west. The population of Hillcrest had became more ethnically diverse in the 1980’s when immigrants from Guyana, Haiti, China, India and Colombia began settling into the area.

The 7,500 sq. ft library building situated in the commercial strip of Union Turnpike was completed in 1974, but its opening was delayed because of a fiscal crisis. During this interim, the building was rented out to several community groups. When it opened on April 28, 1980, it became the 54th branch of the Queens Borough Public Library system.